To Thwart Fate
by Cosette 24601
Summary: After Morgana escapes her dark fate by traveling to Narnia, Merlin follows her to stop her from ever returning. But when Uther avows revenge on the mysterious foe which captured his ward, Camelot may still fall to a dark fate. And has Morgana truly escaped becoming evil or has the victim of her evil side simply changed from Camelot to Narnia?
1. Escape to Narnia

**For this story to work, let's assume that Camelot is another world of its own, not medieval England. **

**Disclaimer: Of course I don't own Merlin or Chronicles of Narnia.  
**

She woke up screaming and gasping for air again, although this time it was much more violent and louder than ever. Gwen rushed in as she always did when Morgana had a nightmare.

"Gwen, Gwen, this one was even worse than the others," Morgana cried.

"Shh, shh milady. It was just a dream. Only a dream," Gwen soothed. But even her maid's comfort would hardly sooth Morgana after this dream. There was no unknown threat threatening herself or her friends in this nightmare. Now, the threat was herself. She saw herself leading an army to ravage the castle of Camelot. She saw flashes of her holding a knife above Uther, reading to plunge and cause his death. She saw herself killing without a second thought, sadistically teasing those around her, reveling in death and destruction. And a strange man in red robes with long white hair and beard fighting to stop her.

"Mo," Morgana whispered. "It was more than that. It was a warning, at the very least. Or a premonition, I fear."

"I could send for Gaius to bring you something stronger to help you sleep," Gwen offered.

"I – I should go speak with Gaius," Morgana said, still clearly shaken up. She began to get up.

"Oh, no milady. I can go speak to him for you if you need a potion," Gwen said.

"No, I need to speak with him about… something else," Morgana said, shaking getting out of bed.

She barged into Gaius' chambers where Merlin was still awake.

"What is it?" Merlin asked, clearly worried about her.

"I need to talk to Gaius," she insisted.

"He'll be back in the morning. You can talk to me. You look pretty worried," Merlin said. After Morgana looked hesitant, Merlin added, "You can trust me."

"Merlin, I'm scared. I'm so confused and I need to know what's happening. Please."

"Well, Gaius can make you a remedy when he gets back," Merlin said, scratching his neck and backing away a little.

"I don't want any more remedies. They won't do any good," Morgana insisted. "I… I think I've had a vision."

Merlin said nothing, knowing that it must be a premonition, but not wanting to show his own knowledge of magic. "What?"

"I'm your friend; you know I wouldn't make this up. It was a vision. From magic," she said.

"Oh. Of course," Merlin said slowly.

"Can you believe me?" Morgana pleaded. "You think my dreams are magic too? Please, Merlin."

"I… I don't know," Merlin said, turning away from her. "What were you dreaming about?"

"Myself… I… I was evil, Merlin. _Evil._ I killed, I led an army, I tortured. I was practically evil incarnate," Morgana said desperately. "And… and I used magic for evil."

"Then… then it can't be real, Morgana. Because you're not evil. And you're not a witch," he said, growing less confident in what he was saying as he remembered the dragon calling Morgana a witch and saying she could not be trusted.

"But… it was so real. So real, Merlin. I need to stop this from happening. By any means possible," Morgana said, suddenly becoming resolute. She glanced around the room. There had to be several poisons here that would quickly do the trick if there was no other way.

"Just… just try to get some sleep for now. And we can talk about it with Gaius in the morning," Merlin offered. "Here, I'll mix you something for tonight."

"Thank you, Merlin," Morgana said, accepting the potion when he was finished. "Merlin, do… do you believe in fate? That are destinies are laid out for us?"

Merlin remembered the many conversations about his own destiny he had with the dragon. But to accept that fate couldn't be changed was to accept that Morgana would become an evil witch and should be stopped. "No, no I don't think so."

"Thank you, Merlin," Morgana said as she walked out the door. As soon as she was gone, Merlin went to speak with Kilgharrah.

After he explained what Morgana saw, the dragon laughed and said, "Aha! Now you see what I mean, young warlock. The witch must be stopped. Only her death will stop her dream from coming true."

"No, no," Merlin protested. "There's got to be some other way. Any other way."

"There is no other way," the dragon said.

"I can't just kill Morgana," Merlin protested.

"Then Arthur will die," Kilgharrah said.

"No! There's got to be something I can do!" Merlin insisted.

"There is nothing in this world that can stop her if the witch lives," the dragon said ominously. Merlin left the cave, visibly upset that his friend was fated to be evil. But if the dragon was right, then Merlin had to kill her. Camelot and Arthur were more important. He snuck into Morgana's bedchambers, not even sure what he was planning on doing. Morgana was pacing around the room, stressing over her dreams. Merlin wanted so much to go comfort her.

Suddenly, they both heard a roar. Morgana screamed in fear, but Gwen didn't come running this time. Surprisingly, neither did any of the guards in the hallway outside her room. Merlin stepped closer, forgetting that he was supposed to kill her and instead ready to protect her. A giant lion stepped into the room. "Greetings, Lady Morgana."

"You… you can talk?" Morgana gasped, backing away from the lion.

"Yes, I can. And I can help you, Morgana. You still have the chance to turn from your fate. Follow me to the world I created, and there you will find a new destiny for you."

"But… if I don't… then my dreams will come true?" Morgana asked quietly. It never occurred to her to question whether the lion was truthful or not.

"No one knows for sure what might have been," the lion growled.

"But… it's likely," she said. "I'll follow you. But, sir, will I ever return?"

"There are other chasms between that world and your own. You may find another and return," he said.

"How- How do I get to that world?" Morgana asked.

"Through here," the lion growled. He roared and Morgana's wardrobe began glowing. She walked to it and found herself in a beautiful field of grass, far greener than any in Camelot and full of life.

There was a searing light through Morgana's room which made Merlin shut his eyes. When he reopened them, both Morgana and the lion had disappeared. Merlin ran to the castle library to do some research. Thankfully, the librarian was asleep. Merlin almost managed to knock an entire shelf over with his clumsiness, but his magic caught it just in time. He found a book on chasms between worlds. He could hardly believe what he was reading. The different stories claimed all sorts of creatures existed in other worlds. Merlin would most definitely not have believed this book which claimed animals could talk in other worlds if he hadn't just seen one very clearly and intelligently talking just a few minutes earlier. There were very complicated-looking spells for how to open chasms and how to close them. Merlin didn't know what to do, so he did what he always did when he was uncertain how he should proceed: visit Kilgharrah.

"Back so soon, young warlock?"

"What do you know of other worlds?" Merlin shouted.

"Ahah! Why do you ask?" the dragon asked. Merlin quickly told him what happened.

"The lion must be Aslan. I was only a young dragon when I heard of him and Narnia," the dragon said.

"You know of the other world?" Merlin asked in confusion.

"Of course I do! Talking creatures of all types can live safely there. I would not have these chains holding me if I was a Narnian dragon. But I have never found a chasm there that a dragon can fit inside," he said. Merlin stared, dumbfounded. Was Kilgharrah actually sad? And even a bit jealous? That was different.

"But you have found chasms? One that I could go through?"

"Yes, young warlock. In fact, the nearest one is here in this cave. Right over there," the dragon said, signaling with a breath of fire.

"That's just a bunch of rocks," Merlin pointed out, wondering if dragons can become senile with old age.

"DON'T be so quick to ignore such things! Magic does not always reveal itself in majestic ways," the dragon boomed. "You especially should understand that."

Merlin frowned, wondering if the dragon was insulting his looks. "So the gap in the pile of rocks over there is a magical chasm to a land with talking animals. Not the strangest thing I've seen today."

"And that is the world the witch must remain in."

"Is Morgana safe there?" Merlin asked.

"If Aslan has taken her into his paws, then nothing can hurt her. But young warlock, you must make sure that she never returns to this world or she may still fulfill her dark destiny of this world," the dragon warned.

"What should I do?"

"There are magical objects that can close the chasms. Your magic will lead you to the chasms and with the right spells, you can determine which objects you need to close them. Close them from the Narnian side, or else the spell may still let her travel to here."

"So… she's never going to be able to come back?" Merlin said, a bit disappointed.

"Do you want her premonition to come true? Do you want all Camelot destroyed by her hate?" the dragon roared.

"No, of course not!"

"Then go to Narnia, and close the chasms!"


	2. The Narnians

Morgana looked around at her strange surroundings. There seemed to be a massive lake with sand at its shore. But the lake seemed endless, like it would continue forever. She wondered if it might be an ocean. She had never seen one before. The water was crystal blue and rippled back and forth. Morgana went to the edge of the water, pulling up her skirts and removing her shoes. She let the cool water flow back and forth over her feet, enjoying the freedom she had to do so.

"Hello, there!"said a voice like a bubbling stream. Morgana looked around but saw no one. "Down here!"

She looked again. "I see no one."

The water swirled around rapidly and formed the shape of a human girl, about the same age as Morgana herself. "You must be from out of the country if you couldn't see that there's several Naiads in this water. Several mermaids too, but not in this part. Are you traveling to Cair Paravel?"

"What's that?" Morgana asked, dumbfounded that water was talking to her.

"That's where the High King Peter, Queen Susan, King Edmund, and Queen Lucy live," the Naiad said.

"Are they… are they water too?" Morgana asked hesitantly. She was also rather confused by having four kings and queen. Two couples shared power?

The Naiad giggled, sending out bubbles and said, "Don't be silly! They're Sons of Adam and Daughters of Eve, of course. No others could make proper kings and queens of Narnia."

Morgana was very confused by the statement. At least she knew the name of the country she was in now. "But.. what sort of _creatures _are they? Not their parents' names."

"Sons of Adams and Daughters of Eve," the Naiad insisted. "You know, _humans._"

Morgana was still confused by the whole Sons of Adam and Daughters of Eve thing, but the idea of finding humans was reassuring. She was a bit put off by the idea of talking with more water. Or another talking lion. She still wasn't entirely sure that she wasn't still dreaming.

"So, how do I get there?" she asked.

"Just keep walking along the beach that way until you see a majestic castle," the Naiad said.

"Thank you," Morgana said. She began walking slowly. Thankfully, it was a nice day out. It was warm, but there was an ocean breeze making her walk quite pleasant. She noticed trees nearby that seemed almost… alive. She shook her head, reminding herself that it must be just the wind. Thinking anything else was ridiculous.

She saw a castle in the distance ahead. Even at this great distance, it was a sight to behold. She hurried her pace, hoping there may be food there. She had been growing quite hungry. Suddenly, a hunting party came out of the forest and surrounded her.

"You are a human, are you not?" the woman at the head of party while dismounting from her horse.

"How unusual," the man who had been riding beside her said, while dismounting from his own horse. The members of their party who had been on horses dismounted as well, following their two leaders. At first Morgana thought some were resisting, before she realized that some of them were half horse, half human. In fact, the only full humans were the two leaders. Morgana looked around at all the other creatures and began feeling rather faint. Some were creatures she recognized, but not quite as she recognized them. That rat was about the same size as a small dog.

"Do you think she might be deaf?" the woman suddenly asked, sounding worried.

"I – I'm not deaf," she finally managed to say.

"Refer to the Queen as her majesty," one of the strange half-goat half-human creatures said. Morgana gasped, afraid they were going to hurt her.

"Now, now. It's quite alright. I'm sure she only made an innocent mistake," the queen said with a gentle smile.

"Yes, your majesty," Morgana said, dropping into a curtsy.

"What is your name, human?" the man asked.

"Morgana, your majesty," she answered. This man must be the lady's husband and the king of Narnia.

"Where are you from, Lady Morgana?" the king asked. "Archenland? Galma?"

"She looks more Telmarine to me," one of the horses muttered, shocking Morgana by its ability to speak.

Neither of those were names of places that Morgana recognized. She debated claiming that she was from one of those countries, but if they should ask any question, she would know nothing. "Camelot, your majesties."

The queen looked delighted, but the king's face clouded as he signaled to his soldiers. Soon two goat-humans had her arms pinned behind her back and were tying them up.

"Peter! What's going on?" the queen exclaimed.

"We can't trust her," he said coldly, "if she's from Camelot."

"All we know of Camelot is what the bards say. Before now, we didn't even know it was a real place," the queen said, seeming distressed.

"Susan, Camelot comes from a prophecy. The bards took the happier part of the prophecy for their songs. But there is a darker part. Before the savior Emrys that the bards sing of appears, the prophecy foretells the appearance of a witch from Camelot –"

"A witch!" the queen gasped, placing a hand on the king.

"A witch with a dark fate," the king continued.

Morgana gasped, memories of her dark dream flooding back.

"Look at her reaction. This must be her," some sort of beast Morgana wasn't familiar with said.

"No, please!" she cried out.

"Should we silence her?" one of the goat-men restraining her said harshly.

"No, let her speak," the king said, waving his hand.

"Your majesty, I'm not a witch. At least, not on purpose," she began.

"What do you mean?"

"I… things have happened around me. I looked at a candle by my bed and almost killed myself by accidently making the flame blow into a huge fire and making my window burst. The Druids say it's not evil, but I… I had a dream last night. While I was still in Camelot. I often have such dreams. More like prophecies really. Although one about Arthur dying did not come true. But strangely, the girl I envisioned drowning him showed up after I dreamt it, but Arthur never even came close to drowning according to Merlin," Morgana began babbling, nervous about their reaction to what she was saying. Mostly the seemed confused by her garbled explanation.

"The dream from last night?" the queen prompted.

"Oh! That… So I saw… myself. Evil. Intent on destroying everyone I love. It was horrifying. I was a murderess, a witch, pure evil! It terrified me. I was about to kill myself when a talking lion suddenly appeared in my bedchambers," she said.

"Aslan?" the queen asked eagerly.

"I – what?"

"Never mind. Please continue," she said with a regal wave of her hand.

"Y-yes your majesty," she said. "He… he said me I could avoid my fate. That I could get to… he called it the world he created… and there I could find a new destiny for me."

"But either way, you are a witch," the king said firmly. "And a danger to yourself and others."

"Peter!" the queen scolded.

"We cannot put our own subjects lives at stake for your sake," he said firmly.

"Please! I cannot let my dream come true. I will do anything for you. Make me your slave, lock me up, whatever you want. But do not send me back. I would rather die," Morgana pleaded. "I cannot let myself become the demon I am in my dreams."

"Peter, you can't just kill her," Susan whispered.

"Relax, Su," he whispered to his sister. Out loud, he said, "Lady Morgana, if what you testify is true, then you are welcome to us. We do not judge for what you cannot control and seem to fear as much as we do. Please know that we do not condone slavery in Narnia and have no desire to imprison one who has yet to commit any crime. You are welcome to stay in Narnia under our specified conditions. You also must have a guard on you at all times. If you try to leave your guards for any amount of time, we will assume you have been up to wrongdoing. Your guards will also be responsible for your wellbeing, as you testified that your uncontrollable magic is a danger to yourself. And you are to swear loyalty to us and Narnia." When he was finished, he glanced at his sister who gave him a small nod of assent.

"Gladly, your majesty," Morgana said, relieved to no longer seem to be in danger of execution. She had no idea how they disposed of witches her, but her memories of the many horrid executions she had witnessed in Camelot haunted her. And the promise of guards protecting her from her magic was comforting. Although she hardly liked the idea of having no privacy. The king gestured to the goat-men who let her hands go, although she was still surrounded by the strange creatures.

"Morgana, from your dress and your hands, I take it you are nobility?" the queen asked curiously.

"Yes, your majesty," she answered, wondering where this was going. "I was the king's ward."

"Somewhat educated then too, no doubt?"

"Yes, your majesty," she said, still not comprehending the point of this questioning.

Susan gestured for her brother to speak to her privately. The surrounding Narnians stepped back to let them speak unheard.

"Pete, Lucy and I have been having issues connecting with and blending in with the noble and royal woman of other countries. She could be an asset. And having an educated woman around could be helpful as well."

"Very well," Peter said. "But I don't want either of you alone with an uncontrollable witch. Don't dismiss her guard when with her."

"Peter," she began complaining.

"Promise me," he said sternly.

"Fine. I promise," she said shortly. "But I choose her guard."

"But –"

"I pick her guard," Susan said, mimicking Peter's earlier stern tone.

"Fine."

Peter turned back towards Morgana. "Lady Morgana, will you agree to be an attendant of and companion to my sisters?"

"Gladly!" Morgana exclaimed, glad that she was being given a position not too far beneath her. "May I ask who the princesses are?"

She was annoyed when her question was answered by laughter. "Queens, not princesses," the queen said. "Myself, and my sister."

"Oh! I assumed you… you were married," she said, embarrassed. The king's and queen's faces turned red at the thought.

"We best return to Cair Paravel now," Peter said. "We'll all walk so the lady will not be alone in walking. Unless you are too tired to walk to the castle?"

"I'll be fine," Morgana said, determined to prove herself capable. She hated when men assumed she was weak because of her gender.

"Very well," the queen said, linking her arms with Morgana. "Off we go."

The queen engaged her in conversation while they travelled to the castle. "And I'm sure you'll enjoy the feast tomorrow. A famed bard is visiting who is sure to delight."

"I will personally ask that he retell the Emrys legends. And see if he can modify it to include the part of the prophecy about the witch," the king said with a frown. Morgana shivered slightly. They might have been kind to her, but it seemed that the king at least was highly suspicious of her.

* * *

Merlin had found one portal, but had no clue where in Narnia to find the materials he needed. But they were all in Gaius' chamber back in Camelot, so he used the portal to return home quickly. He realized it was morning, but he didn't know if it was of the same day or if more time had passed. His question was quickly answered the moment he stepped into Gaius' room.

"Mer_lin_!" Gaius exclaimed. "Where were you all day yesterday?"

Merlin quickly filled Gaius in on the details.

"Merlin, that's not good," he said.

"But this way Morgana can be alive without compromising Arthur's safety," Merlin said.

"Merlin! Listen. Uther has vowed to kill whoever took Morgana. They're rounding up every magic user they can find and are threatening to burn them one by one until Morgana is returned," Gaius said.

"Oh."

"Oh indeed. Now you need to find Morgana to bring her back! Or find some other way of stopping Uther," Gaius said.

Merlin ran to return through the portal and find Morgana, but was stopped by Arthur.

"_There_ you are Merlin. Have you really been in the tavern all day _again_?" he said disapprovingly.

"What? No! Who told you that?" he protested.

"Gaius did, so don't deny it. Merlin, go get my breakfast ready. We head out right after to hunt down more sorcerers," he instructed.

"I – I can't," Merlin blurted out.

"Oh? And why not?"

"I have… I have… a bad stomachache?" he said tentatively.

"A hangover no doubt. Merlin, go get my breakfast ready," Arthur said exasperatedly.

Merlin started walking to get to the portal.

"Um, Merlin? The kitchen's that way," Arthur said, making a big deal out of showing him the direction before giving him a shove.


	3. Search for Morgana

**So what pairs do you ship? I have a few ideas in mind, but I'd love to hear your ideas. **

**Thank you AlwaysBelieve6 for beta-reading the prophecy for this chapter! I was having issues with it. Reviewers, if any of you have suggestions on how to improve it, please review or message me! **

Morgana was amazed at the feast the Narnians had. A lot of it was food she hardly even recognized.

"Um, Lady Morgana?" the younger queen – Lucy was it? – said. "That's not meant for humans."

"Oh!" Morgana said, putting down the mysterious food she had just picked up. She wasn't used to dining with non-human creatures at all.

"Here, try this," the younger king offered, gesturing to a particular dish which did look rather appetizing. Morgana tried to remember his name as well. Edward? Edwin? Edmund? Or Edgar? Definitely something beginning with "Ed". He had been suspicious of her, but acted cordially civil – like the type of geniality one gives to someone they are not fond of but can't offend. Rather like his brother had been treating her as well.

"Thank you, sire," she said politely while helping herself to some food. She wasn't used to choosing from a variety of food and serving herself from the various platters on the table. But it was a delightful new experience, other than continuously almost eating food meant for animals.

"So, have you seen your room yet? Did you like it?" Queen Susan asked anxiously.

Morgana smiled. She had seen it. It put her room in Camelot to shame despite her not being the king's ward here. It would have even put Arthur's room to shame. It was so much brighter, full of colors, and the workmanship of the furniture was incredible. Although workmanship may be the wrong word here since it was likely not humans working on it. "I love it. Thank you so much."

"How wonderful!" the young queen said excitedly, even clapping her hands together. Morgana had never met someone so naively happy all the time, although at times Merlin could be. But not nearly as often or to the extent of this queen. "Just tell us if anything is wrong, and someone will fix it."

"Quiet now," the High King said sternly. "The bards are preparing their songs."

Sure enough, a songbird had flown to a stand in the center of the room. A chorus of birds flew in and surrounded it on the floor. Morgana's eyes widened. She started hoping that these were talking birds. Non-talking birds sang beautiful songs, so what wonders could talking birds sing? She was not disappointed when the lead singer opened its beak and began singing. But the words it sang chilled her to the core.

_Listen to the words I sing tonight a witch_

_Camelot-born, whose presence can curse_

_All Narnia to a dark and dismal fate_

_Not a hundred years of winter, but worse_

_Death and destruction follow in her wake_

_The leading Narnia to fates tragic_

_For not even one knight of Narnia has the strength_

_To stand against the power of her magic. _

_Marching on and on and on_

_The knights so unstoppable, so inexorable_

_Fighting for the witch against the Narnians_

_Is Narnia's fate inevitable_

_But a savior rises from destruction_

_Emyrs' magic can put an end_

_To Narnia's terrible destined fate_

_With the Narnians he will stand and defend_

"Emrys," Morgana whispered. It had a familiar feeling about it, even though she knew she had never met anyone named Emrys. She suddenly noticed that the two kings were looking at her carefully, judging her reaction. "I… I need some air."

The two kings glanced at each other. The High King leaned into his brother's ear and whispered something to him, and he nodded. The younger one then turned to her and said, "Allow me to escort you, lady."

Morgana would have much preferred to have a moment to herself, but she knew arguing would be as futile as anytime she had ever tried to change Uther's mind on anything. She accepted his proffered arm as he escorted her to a garden outside.

"I'm surprised your royal brother let you leave with me alone if the prophecy about me is that dark," Morgana said after awhile.

He laughed. "Naw, Pete's way too overprotective for that. I can only see a few of them, but he's probably sent a whole troop of guards with us."

Morgana looked around, seeing no one. She then realized she needed to stop looking for humans and look for animals. "Oh! Like that bird there?"

"Ah, no. That's actually a regular non-talking bird," he said. "We do have non-talking animals here as well. Ergo why we are able to have meat at our meals."

"Oh! How can you tell?" she asked eagerly. He started explaining the differences to her.

"But why are you so curious?" he suddenly asked suspiciously.

"If I'm living here, it would be nice to know which animals are talking or not. So I don't accidentally rudely ignore a talking animal. Or waste time talking to an animal which can't understand me," she said, ignoring his insulting suspicion. But that answer seemed to placate him.

"Do you feel ready to return, lady?" he asked politely.

"I suppose," she said quietly.

"I can stay out here with you longer if you wish. I'm sure the swordmaster would thank you for it. He keeps telling me I need to eat less," he joked in a more friendly manner.

"The food here is exceptionally good. When I actually find the human food that is," Morgana responded.

"Yes, that is the danger of Narnian food. But what say you, lady? Stay or return?" he asked.

"I suppose I'm just as ready to return as I shall ever be," she said with a sigh.

As they walked back, she finally asked the question that had been burning at the end of her tongue. "Do you really think I am that witch, your majesty?"

"I do not know. You are the only person we have ever met from Camelot, and you yourself say you have dark magic, as that of a witch. But you seem to recognize evil and despise it, so I am not sure what to make of you," he said honestly.

"Will you kill me? If I am the witch it claims me to be?" she asked quietly.

He glanced at her. "I would try other methods first. The prophecy does say "can curse" rather than "will curse." Perhaps your Emrys will come in time. But if I must, I would kill you so as to protect Narnia. I'm sorry, Lady Morgana."

"No, thank you," she said.

"You're thanking me?" he asked. "What for?"

"For being so reasonable about this. In Camelot, anyone who as much as associates with a sorcerer is likely to be executed," she said with a shiver. "My completely innocent, always kind maid was even imprisoned upon ridiculous accusations against her once."

"How horrid. We… we rarely execute anyone here and aren't afraid of magic, even if our reaction to you may have given that incorrect impression. But didn't you say you were the king's ward? Surely you wouldn't have been hurt! Especially if you couldn't help using magic accidentally," he said in shock.

"I fear Uther is far too paranoid for that. He would have had me executed if he had found out," she said with a shiver. The young king noticed and quickly removed his cape to give to her.

"Oh! Thank you," she said, a tad surprised by this gesture of friendship and chivalry.

"No problem," he said with a casual shrug. He led her back.

* * *

"Arthur, I need your help. And I need you to not freak out to much. Or tell your father," Merlin said. Maybe

"_Merlin,_" Arthur cautioned angrily.

"I mean it. It's about Morgana," Merlin said.

Arthur gave his manservant a hard look. "Really? None of my knights can find a trace, and yet somehow _you_ know something?"

"I..uh… kinda saw her leave," he said sheepishly.

"What?!"

"But couldn't say anything because it involved _magic,_" Merlin said. "Keep your voice down!"

"What?!"

"She… I saw her somehow walk into a different world through a wardrobe! We need to go to that world and find her if we want her to return," Merlin said. "I found another way to get in that world as well and saw that she definitely was there."

"_Merlin_, I don't have time for this," Arthur said impatiently. "I don't care that you were in the tavern enough to make it worth you coming up with this ridiculous story."

"I'm serious! Just… just let me show you," Merlin said. He started striding out, knowing Arthur's curiosity would still get the best of him even though he'd never admit to it. Sure enough, Arthur followed him, but not without making disparaging comments about Merlin's intelligence and mental state. They ran into Gwen on the way who overheard one of Arthur's comments.

"You know where Morgana is?" she asked anxiously. She had been worried ever since Morgana disappeared.

"Apparently Merlin thinks she magically transported into another world," Arthur scoffed.

Gwen frowned at him. "You know Merlin wouldn't joke about something as serious as this. But what are you talking about Merlin?

"Let's go! This way," Merlin said. He really hoped no one else would join their party. While in Narnia, he had encountered some Narnians and apparently just one human was enough to cause a commotion there. The three of them were sure to attract unwanted attention.

He had found a passageway that led to the portal without having to go past the dragon.

"Where in the world are you going, Merlin?" Arthur complained yet again.

"Here it is!" Merlin finally said. The portal was inactive, but Merlin could activate it with magic. But Arthur was watching too closely. "Um… I need to pull this lever here," Merlin muttered, hiding his eyes by pretending to be pulling some lever at the base of it. The portal began glowing.

"What the – " Arthur began. Merlin ignored him and went through the portal. Gwen followed, grabbing Arthur and bringing him through.

"Incredible," Gwen said, shaking her head in wonder. She hadn't quite believed Merlin until this moment. It was just too unbelievable. Merlin struggled to not laugh when he saw Arthur's face. His mouth was opening and closing like a fish.

"So… we should go find Morgana, right?" Merlin said, still grinning at Arthur's reaction.

"I thought you _knew_ where she was," Arthur said.

"Well, um… not exactly. I think she might be in the castle," he offered. "So… we just have to sneak in."

"So your plan is for the three of us to sneak into a likely guarded castle with only my sword as a weapon on the chance that Morgana _might _be there?" Arthur said incredulously.

"If she might be there, then we need to go," Gwen insisted.

"So where is this castle, _Mer_lin? Or is finding it another part of your brilliant plan?" Arthur asked.

"I found it last time by following the beach up. It's impossible to miss," Merlin said.

As they walked, Arthur's knight instincts began kicking in. He was almost positive they were being watched. But he didn't see any humans anywhere. Just animals.

Gwen suddenly shrieked.

"What is it?" Arthur said, moving in front of her to protect her.

"That … that tree just… walked," she said in a shocked voice.

"The trees are weird here," was all Merlin could respond to that. "I think they're harmless though. At least, none have hurt me yet."

"That's real comforting," Arthur muttered.

Eventually, several animals came prowling, flying, or walking out towards them. Merlin gulped. It looked like the unwanted attention he was afraid would happen thanks to them being four humans had occurred.

"I've never seen animals unite like this," Arthur muttered worriedly.

"Yeah, about the animals…" Merlin began.

"Yes, _Mer_lin. I can see them," Arthur retorted. He pulled out his sword, waving it and shouting, "Back! Back you animals!"

"Well, that's rather rude I daresay," a beaver said, placing her hands on her hips.

Arthur looked like he might actually pass out from shock.


	4. Danger from Camelot

"You can talk?" Gwen exclaimed.

"But of course dearie. You must be new here," Mrs. Beaver said.

"We just got here," she said with a weak attempt at a friendly grin.

"By ship? Because Archenlanders would know about Talking Animals," a squirrel said.

"Yeah," Merlin said uncertainly. Arthur nodded, not willing to admit that they may have used magic to get here.

"Where were you headed to?" asked an otter.

"Um, the castle," Arthur said, recovering from his shock.

"Of Four Thrones? Cair Paravel?" the otter asked.

"I think so…" Arthur said uncertainly, glancing at Merlin.

Merlin raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised that Arthur would ever look to him for confirmation. "Yeah," he repeated.

"We'll bring you there," Mrs. Beaver said decisively. Since she had been one of the guides of the four when they first arrived in Narnia, she was often looked to in decisions regarding them. She then gestured towards a bird named Swallowpad and whispered, "Fly ahead and warn them just in case. It looks like they could be dangerous."

Lucy and Morgana were just returning from an errand in a nearby village when Swallowpad spotted them and decided to give his message just a little bit sooner to them.

"Three humans! On their way to Cair Paravel," he croaked.

"More humans?" Susan said with a slight frown.

"More?" Morgana asked.

"Well, even just one – you – is surprising," she pointed out.

"I hope they're friendly," Lucy said cheerfully.

"Just in case," Susan said, gesturing significantly towards Cair Paravel.

"So it's not just me. Every human gets personal attention," Morgana said, somewhat amused.

"Well, all humans here would be foreigners," Susan pointed out. "Some other parts of Narnia get human traders there somewhat regularly, but humans around Cair Paravel are usually only here to visit us, so we know about them in advance."

"So am I the only human to ever show up unexpectedly?" Morgana asked.

"Yes. So these new humans put us at a rate of having this sort of excitement once every two months?" Lucy joked, seeing as by the end of the week, Morgana could say she had been Narnian for two months.

"Let's go check them out," Lucy suggested.

Susan glanced at the Narnian soldiers who had accompanied them, but they didn't seem particularly perturbed. The lead guard, a centaur, said, "We can easily handle three humans if they turn out to be a threat. But do not let them near you, or it may be more difficult."

"Then let us go!" Lucy said cheerfully. The idea of danger didn't bother her one whit.

"Lu, remember his warning though about getting too close," Susan reprimanded as they rode off, knowing it was all too likely to happen with Lucy.

"Mhhmm, whatever," she said, galloping off. Susan sighed. Morgana exchanged an amused glance with her before they both galloped off as well.

It wasn't hard to find them. A huge crowd of Talking Beasts and other Narnian creatures had amassed around the three humans. As soon as they saw the queens, they shuffled to make a path for them to enter through.

"Arthur? Gwen? Merlin?" Morgana gasped, riding directly up to them and jumping off her horse.

The three of them all exclaimed and greeted her.

"Morgana, we came to rescue you," Arthur said recklessly, raising his sword. "Have these… _creatures_ harmed you at all?"

"Don't be ridiculous. They're my friends," Morgana scolded.

"They are from Camelot?" Susan said curiously. Morgana caught the implied question: _Could one of them be Emrys? _

"That's where they're from, yes," she said, making it clear she was only answering the spoken question. After all, she would have known if any of her three closest friends had _magic._ Especially such powerful magic to defy her… well, the images she had seen herself becoming.

"Now that we found Lady Morgana, we will be returning there," Arthur said firmly.

"I'm not leaving," Morgana insisted.

"What?!" Arthur said.

"This is where I belong now," she insisted.

"Morgana, you _can't _be _serious_," he whined. "Do you really want to be… here?"

Several Narnians growled or snarled, offended by the slight to their home country.

Gwen tried much softer tactics. "Morgana, you haven't been here even a whole day. How could you make sure a decision so quickly?"

Morgana frowned. "I've been here almost two months."

"What?!"

"Time in this world and others rarely runs in a linear fashion," Susan said nonchalantly.

"Either way, you need to return. For a little while at least. Or else all magic users will be hunted down," Merlin said, knowing that would be the most likely to convince her.

"What?" she cried out.

"Father's determined to hunt down every magic user and begin killing them until you're returned. He's convinced that a great witch or warlock must have captured you," Arthur said, glaring at the various Narnians. Lucy could see narrowed eyes, bristling fur, and other signs which made her realize intervention was necessary.

"As you can plainly see, she is here of her own free will. And has our leave to return if she so wishes. But if you try to force her, we will help her fight you," she said determinedly.

"I…I'll go back long enough to explain to Uther," Morgana said uncertainly. "And then return to live here. There… there won't be a big gap in time here, will there? I don't want to miss time here."

Susan and Lucy both shrugged unhelpfully.

"Then I won't return. Here," she said, removing her bracelet. "Take this as a token. He knows I always wear this, so he'll know it's from me."

"What's so important here that you can't return even for a short amount of time?" Gwen inquired, realizing something suspicious was up. Morgana didn't answer directly, but she glanced back towards the direction of the castle, and Gwen could have sworn she saw the ghost of a blush on her cheeks. She wanted to ask Morgana, but figured she hadn't said anything since Merlin and Arthur were both there.

"Her private matters do not concern you," Susan said possessively.

That of course angered Arthur. "She is my father's ward! Anything regarding her is my business!"

Morgana rolled her eyes as Arthur. "I'm not returning just accept that and go tell him."

"Not until I get some answers," he insisted, raising his sword as the more vicious animals got ready to pounce.

"Stand down," Susan instructed to the animals. They then gave the illusion of not being ready to fight, when in fact they would easily overtake Arthur should he fight. She turned to Arthur with a terrible frown and said haughtily, "And you! Do you normally dish out commands and give out threats to foreign royalty and their subjects?"

Arthur started, but composed himself and offered a shallow bow and said, "Forgive me, your highness. I was unaware you were a princess."

"Queen," Morgana quickly interjected.

"And if you do not leave soon, we will have to force you out of our land which you have trespassed onto," Lucy threatened. She was normally the nicest to others, but not if you insulted her friends.

"There's no need for fighting. We'll leave," Gwen said bravely, tugging on Arthur's arm. She was grateful when she felt Arthur actually relenting.

"We'll be back, Morgana. To check that they're treating you well," he said threateningly. Morgana just rolled her eyes again.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Morgana said, "Don't worry about them being back. I'm sure Uther is going to ban them from coming back. The only way here is magically, and he despises anything magical."

"What's going on?" Edmund asked anxiously as he and Peter rode up.

"A little late, slowpokes," Lucy teased.

"As usual," Susan added.

"The fun's all over, boys," Morgana teased both of them, but her eyes were only on Edmund.

* * *

Arthur, Gwen, and Merlin found their way back through the portal.

"So what are we going to tell him? He won't be happy if he hears of a magic portal. Or when he hears that we used it," Gwen fretted.

"We're not going to lie to my father," Arthur said with a frown. "I'll go tell him right now."

Arthur burst into the throne room, Gwen and Merlin anxiously following.

"We found Morgana. But she refuses to return," Arthur said, jumping straight into the heart of the matter. All attention was on him in that instant. Uther rose slowly, his full attention on his son for once.

"Where is she?"

"She… she found a magic portal to travel through to another world," he said, realizing as he was saying how ridiculous he sounded. He should've had Merlin say it. Merlin was much more used to looking ridiculous.

"Show him her bracelet," Gwen whispered.

"She gave us her bracelet a proof that we saw her," Arthur said, pulling it out.

"Another world though?" Gwaine who had been standing around laughed skeptically. "Sounds like someone had a bit much to drink."

"Arthur, are you claiming you traveled to another world and found Morgana there?" Uther said distrustfully.

"Merlin and Gwen were there too," he explained. They both nodded in confirmation, but Uther was hardly any more convinced than he was before. Arthur then got an idea. "The portal should still be there, right Merlin? We can show you."

"Use magic?" Uther said sternly.

"No. Well, yes. But it's a magical artifact. It doesn't use spells," Arthur said. Merlin gulped. How was he to perform magic with all of them watching and have none of them notice?

"Let's see it, and then we can put this nonsense behind us," an adviser suggested in annoyance.

They all went down and Merlin found the portal again. He bowed his head to hide his eyes and whispered as quietly as possible. He faked using a lever, making sure they could see that movement but not the lack of a lever. Thankfully, no one said anything, so it looked like his magic was unnoticed as usual. Probably if anyone did see, they would just convince themselves that what they saw wasn't accurate since no one ever believed him capable of well, anything really.

Several people gasped when they saw the portal glowing. Uther narrowed his eyes at the clear sign of magic.

"So just through here," Arthur said, walking through it. Others were more hesitant about using it, their utter hatred and fear of anything magical frightening them.

After Uther finally decided to step through the portal – partially out of love for Morgana and partially from not wishing to appear a coward – he surveyed the scene before him.

"So… we should probably not stay for long. There's talking animals and all sorts of other creatures," Arthur said cautiously.

"What?" Uther snapped. As Arthur explained the different creatures that had approached them, his frown keep deepening. When Arthur was finished, Uther said, "We cannot allow Morgana to stay here. This is clearly a place of deep enchantment, and they have put her under a spell to make her think she should stay. If we have to raze it to the ground to rescue her, then we will. We will return to Camelot now, but only to round up our troops. Tomorrow, we attack Narnia, killing anyone who may have had a hand in capturing my ward."


End file.
